But how did Ray Dalio’s net worth grow so large? You’ll be surprised when you find out how young he was when he started to build his fortune.

1. Ray Dalio’s Net Worth Is $15.6 Billion

Ray Dalio has a net worth of about $15.6 billion. (Source: “The World’s Billionaires,” Forbes, last accessed March 3, 2016.) Dalio is the founder and co-chief investment officer of investment management firm Bridgewater Associates. According to Forbes, that makes him the 25th richest person in the U.S. and the 48th richest in the world.

2. He Started Investing When He Was 12

Ray Dalio, who will turn 67 this August, began building his net worth at the age of 12 when he bought $300.00 worth of shares. He’d earned the money while working as a golf caddie and invested in the now defunct Northeast Airlines.Shortly after, the company went through a merger and the stock tripled in price. (Source: “Pursuing Self-Interest in Harmony With the Laws of the Universe and Contributing to Evolution Is Universally Rewarded,” New York Magazine, April 10, 2011.)In 1974, Dalio graduated from Harvard Business School with an MBA and went on to work trading futures for an investment firm for a year.

3. His Hedge Fund Is the Largest in the World

After Dalio left the firm where he worked trading futures, with no experience he opened Bridgewater Associates with a friend from his rugby team—with no experience managing money. (Source: Ibid.)Dalio began building the Bridgewater’s client base by sending out market briefings, which was successful in landing the firm’s first major investors—large pension funds that committed several million dollars, which was the start to his road to great wealth.In 2012, Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates hedge fund became the largest hedge fund in the world. The fund manages about $154.0 billion in global investments. (Source: “Our Company,” Bridgewater Associates, last accessed March 3, 2016.)

4. Bridgewater’s Annual Return Is 18%

As Dalio built up Bridgewater’s client base, he fine-tuned his investing theory that would eventually make him a billionaire.Dalio observed that the global economy has certain cycles that repeat themselves during economic and political changes. If you were to identify those patterns, Dalio noted, you could build a model that could predict the ups and downs of the market. One example would be noticing a rising debt ratio. (Source: “Pursuing Self-Interest in Harmony With the Laws of the Universe and Contributing to Evolution Is Universally Rewarded,” New York Magazine, April 10, 2011.)Dalio’s investing philosophy made him rich, as Bridgewater went on to post an average annualized return of 18% since 1991. (Source: Ibid.) The firm’s flagship fund only lost money in three years in that same time span.

5. He Predicted the Global Financial Crisis

In 2008, Dalio published an essay, titled “How the Economic Machine Works; A Template for Understanding What is Happening Now,” in which he laid out his argument that an economic crisis was about to happen.Bridgewater’s quantitative models were able to identify certain signals that showed an economic collapse was about to happen. In the spring of 2008, one of these patterns—a risk metric for credit-default spreads—alerted Bridgewater to pull its money out of several banks, including Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns. (Source: Ibid.) A week later, Bear Stearns collapsed.

In 1974, Dalio graduated from Harvard Business School with an MBA and went on to work trading futures for an investment firm for a year.

3. His Hedge Fund Is the Largest in the World

After Dalio left the firm where he worked trading futures, with no experience he opened Bridgewater Associates with a friend from his rugby team—with no experience managing money. (Source: Ibid.)

Dalio began building the Bridgewater’s client base by sending out market briefings, which was successful in landing the firm’s first major investors—large pension funds that committed several million dollars, which was the start to his road to great wealth.

In 2012, Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates hedge fund became the largest hedge fund in the world. The fund manages about $154.0 billion in global investments. (Source: “Our Company,” Bridgewater Associates, last accessed March 3, 2016.)

4. Bridgewater’s Annual Return Is 18%

As Dalio built up Bridgewater’s client base, he fine-tuned his investing theory that would eventually make him a billionaire.

Dalio’s investing philosophy made him rich, as Bridgewater went on to post an average annualized return of 18% since 1991. (Source: Ibid.) The firm’s flagship fund only lost money in three years in that same time span.

5. He Predicted the Global Financial Crisis

In 2008, Dalio published an essay, titled “How the Economic Machine Works; A Template for Understanding What is Happening Now,” in which he laid out his argument that an economic crisis was about to happen.

Bridgewater’s quantitative models were able to identify certain signals that showed an economic collapse was about to happen. In the spring of 2008, one of these patterns—a risk metric for credit-default spreads—alerted Bridgewater to pull its money out of several banks, including Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns. (Source: Ibid.) A week later, Bear Stearns collapsed.

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From: Michael Lombardi, MBASubject: Gold: The Stock Contrarian Investors’ Best Play of the Decade